Pallet feeding device for concrete block machines



July 18, 1950 P. E. soi nvl, SR 2,515,438

PALLET FEEDING DEVICE FOR CONCRETE BLOCK MACHINES Filed June 23, 1948 4 Sheets-Sheet l IN VEN TOR.

PAz L A. 5mm, .52.

MY W.

ATTORNE Y5 July 18, 1950 P, E BOHM, SR 2,515,438

PALLET FEEDING DEVICE FOR CONCRETE BLOCK MACHINES Filed June 23, 1948 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 a/ //0 ma 48 zz Z5 IN VEN TOR.

fin/4 2, 50/1/ 7 52.

BYWW.

A T TORNE 1 .5

P. E BOHM, SR

July 18, 1950 PALLET FEEDING DEVICE FOR CONCRETE BLOCK MACHINES Filed June 25, 1948 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 INVENTOR.

- R204 A? 50mg 2.

ATTORNEYS July 18, 1950 P. E. BOHM, SR 2,515,438

PALLET FEEDING DEVICE FOR CONCRETE BLOCK MACHINES Filed June 25, 1948 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 LMJ aw &

INVENTOR, 641/4 ,5 5 B.

Patented July 18, 1950 PALLET"FE'EDING DEVICE-FOR GQNGRETE v i BLOCK. MACHINES;

Paul E. Bohml srl. scanners, 11. 1. p v

\ Application June 23, 1948, Serial No. 34 7-96- This invention'relatesto apallet feedingdevice for concrete block. machines. The'useuorr pallets in the manufacture-of concrete blockstoxsupport the blocks during the molding thereof and, after molding, during curing. or setting. thereof has been practiced for. many: years; These pallets constitute metal plateslwhich are usually inserted into theblock molds of. a. blockemaking. machine by hand, each pallet being removed. from. the machine with.- the block. molded thereon. Since the pallets must be fed tothe block'lmolds .between the successive moldingoperations; the manual application thereof has been time-consuming; and has limited: the'capacity of. the: output of the block. machine. This is particularly true in. machines having multiple cavity molds because of the. necessity of. positioning each pallet in a mold accurately so: that it assumes ahorizontal position at-the bottom of the; mold cavity. The primary objectv of this, inventionis to provide a device of simple: rugged construction adapted for use in conjunction with ai concrete block machine without interfering with the functioning of that machine andxwhichv is operable to:' discharge pa-llets in. operative positio in a block mold of the machine. a

A further object is? to: provide a device of this character which includes a support upon which one or more piles of pallets are stacked, a guide below the support, and a feed member which reciprocates on the guide and is operable to release the lowermost pallet of each stack and propel it along thev guidefor passing intoa mold. I

A further object is to provide a device of this character with a guide upon which a feed member reciprocates, said guide being characterized by a shiftable section normally held in one position but movable to a discharge position when the feed member reaches a predetermined position thereon.

A further object is to provide a device of this character with a guide member including a plurality of shiftable parts and a primary and secondary track, which guide member is traversed reciprocably by a. feed member between two limits of movement, wherein the feed. member has a pair of pivoted parts normally traversing said primary track, of which one tilts at the end of one stroke thereof to a pallet discharging position providing for traverse thereof along the secondary track of. the guide upon its return stroke. 7

Other objects will be apparent from. the following specification.

In. thedrawings: Fig. 1 is avievt of. therdevice in. side.- elevation. Fig. .2..is; a. toplplan; view .of the. device. with parts. broken. away...

, Fig. 3 is; anhenlargeds fragmentary side. view of the. guide.andfeedportionsof the device. 7

Fig.4 is a fragmentary plan view are portion of the deviceill-ustrated' in Fig. 3r

. Fig.5 isafragmenetary end .view of the device as seen from the right in Fig. 1. -..P 'ig. 6..is anenlarged. fragmentary side; view illustrating atportionof the guide.

Fig. 'l-isa transverse sectional view takenv on line: I of Fig. dand. illustrating; the roller. in an axially centered position. relative to saidsection line, I 1.

Fig. 8 is a fragmentary. view illustrating a roller. its mounting member and; related parts,

with parts illustratedin axial. sectionl Fig. 9 is adetail face view of; one. of the: con.- trol switches of. the device.

' This invention is adapted, to be. used. in conjunction with. a- .concrete. block. machine of the character having stationary molds. to which serve to outline. a concrete blockformed; therein, which block is. lifted from. the mold after formation thereof, being supported: upon cored pallets.

which. may be [engaged-by suitable lift; means. for

transfer or the; fcrmedbblock supportednpon the palletfrom the mold: 1101a. rack. or. other member upon which. it maybe mounted during the; curin or hardening-of the block. as from. position Ii] to position I07 in. Fig. 2.. The. block-forming machine includes a .shiftable discharge: member for concrete. a. pressure: member. for acting. upon the concreteqafter. the; mold has been filled; and a vibrator for packing. the concrete in. the mold. These parts. are conventional and. are not shown herein. Certain parts-of thenirame 0f the ma chine-gonlyare shown for purposesaof illustrating the attachment of the device: comprising the instantinvention thereto. Such parts include theframe elements.- lzii and- [3 which have been i1lustratedsolely for purposes. of defining the relationship of theifeeding device to the machine, and particularly to the molds Ill-of that machine.

The instant machine comprises a guide. member 20, generallyinclined as illustrated in Fig. 1, whose lower. end terminates in a positionadjacent and aboverthemoldstllls and is fixedly secured to the frame-part l2 of the machine as by bolts. 2|. The opposite end of the guide unit 20 is supported by legs 22 having. foot members 12.3 bearing upon. a floor or other supporting; surface. The guides include two longitudinal, or

3 side members extending in spaced parallel relation suitably interconnected at their opposite ends by cross-members 24. This guide structure will be described in greater detail hereinafter.

The supporting leg 22 project above the level of the guide 29, and at one end support the outer ends of longitudinal members 25 whose inner ends are secured by bolts 26 to a stationary part of the frame of the machine, for example, the frame part I3. Uprights 21 are carried by the horizontal members 26 and at their upper ends,

support upper longitudinal frame members 28 which may be connected at their inner ends to the part l3 of the machine frame. A plurality of rigid angle members 29 are fixedly secured to the longitudinal members 25 and 28 and project and-having'inwardly projecting flanges 41. The members 46 are of a length to span the space between the angle irons 31 and 44 and are tapered at their free ends to bear against the angle irons. 39, thereby forming a continuation of the track defined ,by the flanges 38 of the angle irons 31.

below the member 25 to terminate adjacent to the guide unit 29, as best seen in Fig. 1. Intermediate bars 38 may likewise be supported by the members '25 and 28. The assembly of the parts 25 to 3ll, inclusive, provides a, support within which one or more piles of pallets may be stacked in an inclined position with the ends or edges of the pallets adjacent the block-forming machine positioned lowermost. It will be understood that the angles 29 engage the corners of" these pallets and retain them in the desired stacked position, and longitudinal bottom members (not shown) support the weight of the stack. r I

A feed member or unit 3| traverses the guide and is adapted to remove the lowermost pallet of each stack upon each working stroke thereof, carrying the same to a position above the mold l0 where it tilts to an inclined position accommodating the discharge of the pallet ll into the mold, as illustrated in Fig. 1. For this purpose the angles 29, shown at the left in Fig. 1, terminate above the position of the workfeeding means 3| distance slightly greater than the thickness of a pallet to permit the liding of a pallet from the bottom of the stack by said feed member while retaining all pallets above the pallet to be withdrawn, in the stacked position.

The side members of the guide each comprise a wide plate 35 positioned in a vertical plane and being of a greater width at its lower inner end, as illustrated in Figs. 1 and 3, than at its upper outer end, and being characterized by an inclined bottom edge portion 36 intermediate its wide and narrow portions. An angle iron 31 is welded along the inner margin of the narrow portion of each of the plates 35 with its flange 38 projecting inwardly therefrom. A similar angle iron 39 is weldedalong the lower inclined margin of the plate 35 at the part 36 thereof, said angle iron 39 being inclined at an angle to the angle iron 31 and having its inwardly projecting flange in end abutment with the flange 38 of the angle iron 31. A third angle iron 49 is welded along the margin of the wide part of the plate 35 with its inwardly .projectingflange 4| in end abutment with the inwardly projecting flange of the angle iron 39. The inwardly projecting flanges of the angle irons 31, 39 and 48 thus form continuous tracks at the opposite sides of the guides with the tracks of the angle irons 31 and 49 being substantially parallel but extending at an angle to the inwardly projecting flanges of the angle iron 39. The upper margins of the plates 35 preferablyinclude inwardly bent portions 42 and terminate in inwardly offset vertical flange portions 43. l The members "30 and the flanges of the'angle irons 29 which are parallel to-the plates 35 maybe welded or otherwise An elongated rigid arm 58 is pivoted to each plate 35 adjacent the junction between the angle irons 39 and 40 by means of studs 5|. The forward or outer ends of these arms mount counterweights 52. The inner ends'ofthese arms mount track sections 53 which in their normal position are aligned with theendsof the guide flanges of the angle irons44'toform acontinuation of the track; The arms 50 each mount a longitudinally projecting tongue 54.: Brackets 55 to which the inner ends'of theplates 35 are welded or otherwise secured-and which in turnare secured to the frame members "I 2 of the cement block machine, each have a bellcrank latching member pivoted thereto at 56. One arm 510i the bellcranknormally downwardly pressed by-' a spring 58 carried by the bracket 55 and bearin against arm51. The downward movement of the arm- 51 is limited-by a stop bolt 59. The other arm 60 of the bellcrank extends downwardly below the pivot pin 56 and'isnotched at 6| to engagethe forwardly projecting tongue 54-carried by the-arm 50." The lower end of the arm 6| has a beveled nose portion 62 permitting the tongue 54 to latch itself automatically when swung in'an upward direction from the dotted line position shown in Fig. "3'. The parts are so proportionedand-balanced that the weight 52 will normally urge the arm. 58: tome full line position shown in Fig. 3,-"where the tongue 54 thereof mayube latched by the latching bellcrank atfifl 'sl i 7 A feed member 3| is adapted to traverse the guide member described above andincludes an end structure 65'positionecl between thetwo' opposite side guides 20 and 'p'rovi'ded at its opposite ends with vertical-"wall portions 66. The

lower ends of the wall members 63 at both sides thereof mountprojecting studs which journal rear"rollers" 61- and frz'mt rollers'68 adapted in their normal position :to roll in the track prosubstantially central of the side members 12, a

pair of' rollers '16 are journaled upon studs projecting from opposite side members 12 in axial alignmentahdadapted to traverse the guide unit mentioned above. The carriage is shiftable between two positionsillustrated respectively in Figs. 1' and 3. In the Fig. 1' position, all of the rollers 16, 68 and 61 are supported upon the inwardly projecting flanges 38 of the angle irons 3! and are confined against upward movement by the flanges 12 of the plates In this Fig. 1 position it will be observed that the pivoted front structure of the feed member, including the parts '52 to inclusive, is positioned below the pallet supporting structure 25-30. The Fig. '3 position illustrates the opposite extreme of the movement and will be described hereinafter.

Each of the flanges'42 of the side plates 35 mounts a supporting block for a bearing member 8-! projecting above the level of the guide flange A3. A. shaft 82 is journaled in the bear ings 8i and is positioned adjacent to and inwardly from the left-hand inclined angle iron 29 of the pallet stacking structure as viewed in Fig. l. Crank arms 83 are fixedly secured to the outer projecting end portions of the shaft 82 and each has pivotally connected thereto at one end of a link 85. The opposite ends of the links 85 are pivotallyconnected to the studs 69 of the feed carriage. The shaft 82 also mounts a pulley 8B which has a driving connection through a belt 8'! with a pulley 88 mounted upon a shaft 89 projecting from a speed reducing unit 9!]. The speed reducing unit is mounted upon a platform 9! supported by the uprights 2'! and by any other suitable bracing and supporting means carried by the stationary structure of the device in a position spaced-laterally outwardly from the pallet stacking means, as illustrated in Fig. 5. The speed reducing means 9f! includes an input shaft 92 which mounts a pulley 93 around which is trained another belt illustrated diagrammatically by the center line 94. This belt is trained on a pulley 95 mounted on the shaft of a motor 55' supported on a standard or base 9'! fixedly secured upon the frame member E3 of the'machine. It will be apparent that as the drive motor 96 operates, the pulley 85 is driven in predetermined timed relation and caused to rotate theshaft 82' and the cranks 83 so that connecting rods 85 are caused by their'connections at 69 with the feed member to move the feed member along the guide between the position illustrated in Fig. 1 and the position illustrated in Fig. 3.

A plate I60 is secured to the rigid structure of the device and extends between the guide 28 and the bottom cross-member 25 of the stacking means, as best seen in Fig. 1. This plate mounts a pair of switches Hill and H12 provided, respectively, with spring-urged actuating arms )3 and HM projecting therefrom. The shaft 82 mounts a disk I05 which is provided with two or more arcuate slots I56. 'Securing members it! are adjustably positioned in the slots Hi5 and serve to secure in desired position upon the disk a pair of blocks Hi8 and "39, each of which terminates adjacent to the periphery of the disk Hi5 and is provided with a projection Ill] extending outwardly beyond the periphery of the disk 185. The blocks I68 and I59 are so arranged that the projections ll!) thereof will strike the ends of the arms I53 and I84 of the switches 15! and W2 incident to rotation thereof. In the preferred embodiment of the invention the projection H5 of the block Hi8 will strike the arm I03 of the switch l0! once during each revolution thereof and will pass clear of the arm ll of the switch I52. Likewise the projection Hil of the block Hit will-engage one arm its of the switch I02 and will pass clear of the arm H13 of the switch lfit. The two switches Idland "F2 are connected in an electrical circuit (not shown) for the purpose of controlling the motor 96 in the proper sequence of operation of the device, said circuit preferably including a manually operated switch (not shown) for initiating the operation of the motor 55 in each cycle, and", if desired, the switches it! and H32 may control other elements of thedevice or of the concrete block machine.

The front pivoted portion of the carriage of the feed member 3i has a cross-member H5 pivoted thereto by means of studs H6; The'upper end of the member H5 projects above the level of the members 12, 13- and- IA-whereby it is adapted to engagebehind the lowermost'pallet l l in the stacking device when the parts are in the position shown in Fig. 1. The member H5 is positioned against a flange of the member 15 to prevent clockwise rotation thereof when in upright position. A projection ll'l extends downwardly and is oifset from the pivot axis of the studs H6, permitting counter-clockwise rotation of the member I 65 limited by the member 15. In this counter-clockwise tilted position, the member li'l projects downwardly to engage the lefthand cross-bar '24 of the guide'structure 25 as it approaches the position illustrated in Fig. 1, whereby when the feed carriage reaches the end of its stroke, illustrated in Fig.1, it will be moved in clockwise direction to upright position. In other words, as the carriage moves toward its Fig. 1 position with the member 8 l5 engaging the bottom side of the lowermost pallet H of the stack, that pallet will tilt the member M5 topermit it to pass under the pallet until the member H5 passes clear of the pallet to a position at the right of the pallet, as shown in Fig. 1, whereupon the member 24 swings the member M5 to its upright projecting position. Therefore, it will be observed that the members il5 serve as the means for withdrawing the lowermost pallet H. from the stacking structure 25-3fl during the working stroke without disturbing the pallets stacked in the device during the return stroke. The termination of the left-hand angle irons 29 of the stacking means above the bottom pallet permits the member I I5, positioned upright by the member 15, to slide the bottom pallet only from the stack incident to the next forward movement of the carriage.

As the carriage is moved from the Fig. l to the Fig. 2 position by the cranks 83 and links 85, the pallet H is carried thereby in the general plane of the guide until it approaches the end of its stroke. At that point the rollers 1'6 at the front pivoted part of the carriage will run upon the track portions 53 of the guide which are carried by the counter-weighted arms 55 and will strike the bellcrank arms til, swinging the same against the action of the spring 58 to disengage the tongues 54 mounted upon the arms 55-. The weight of the carriage and the leverage exerted thereby is sufiicient to overcome the counterweight 52, whereupon the arms 50 swing about their pivot axes 5l to the dotted line position shown in Fig. 3. As the arms 5!] swing to the dotted line position, the front portion l2--15 of the carriage pivots about the shaft 10 in a downward direction, tilting downwardly to the palletreleasing position illustrated in Fig. 1. The angle of tilt in this instance is sufiicient to permit the pallet II to slide from the tilted carriage 12-15,

and the-position of the front of the carriage is such that as the pallet slides therefrom, it will enter the mold IU of the block machine. The rollers 16 thereupon engage the flange 4| of the lower angle iron 40, and, upon the return stroke of the carriage, the rollers 61, 68 will traverse the guide flanges 38 and 41 while the rollers 16 traverse the guide flanges of the angle irons 40 and 39. As the rollers 16 roll up the guide flanges of the angle iron 39, they will engage and upwardly pivot the T-sections 4B, 41 of the track to permit the rollers 16 to ride upon the flanges 38 of the angle iron 31. As soon as the rollers 16 are clear of'the tilted track sections'46, 41, the same lower by gravity to their normal position aligned with the flanges of the tracks 31, 44. The return of the front palleten gaging portion of the carriage is thus in a path spaced below the pallets carried by the structure until the carriage is substantially at the commencement of its stroke, and resistance to free movement of the carriage is minimized and the working load upon the machine is therefore reduced.

The swinging of the arms 50 from the full line to the dotted line position in Fig. 3 is limited by brackets I20 which are fixedly secured to the guides 20 and are provided with stop bolts l'2l which may be adjusted in the brackets and which are engaged by the arms 50' in the dotted line position.

While the preferred embodiment of the invention has been illustrated and described herein, it will be understood that changes in the construction may be made Within the scope of the appended claims without departing from th spirit of the invention. Y

I claim:

1. Pallet feed mechanism, comprising a stack support upon which a plurality of pallets may be stacked, a guide positioned below said stack support and extending laterally therefrom, a carriage shiftable on said guide to remove the lowermost pallet from said support, said carriage including a pivoted pallet-engaging section, said guide including an upper track portion and a lower track portion joining said upper track portion intermediate the ends of the latter, driving means for reciprocably shifting said carriage along said guide, said carriag traveling along said upper track during its feeding stroke to a discharge position at which the pivoted section thereof passes clear of said upper track and pivots to a pallet-releasing tilted position engaging said lower track to be guided by said lower track on its return stroke in a lowered position clear of said pallets for the major portion of said return stroke.

2. The construction defined in claim 1, wherein said upper track includes a pivoted section located at the junction of the upper and lower tracks, said pivoted track section being normally positioned by gravity in alignment with said upper track and being elevated by said pivoted carriage section to accommodate return of the latter from the lower track to the upper track during its return stroke.

3. The construction defined in claim 1, and a pivoted member carried by said guide and including a portion forming a continuation of said upper track, said member pivoting under the weight of said pivoted carriage section to tilt the latter and transfer it to said lower track.

4. The construction defined in claim 1, wherein said upper track includes a separate terminal portion, a pivoted member mounts said terminal portion'for bodily vertical movement, and a latch normally locks said pivoted member against movement, said carrier engaging and releasing said latch at a predetermined discharge position.

5. The construction defined in claim 1, wherein said carriage includes a plurality of rollers traversing said guide, said pivoted carriage section being supported by one of said rollers spaced stroke, and an abutment on said guide engaged by said first abutment to pivot the latter to operative position at the conclusion of said return stroke.

7. The construction defined in claim 1, wherein a member is pivoted to said guide on a, horizontal transverse axis, said pivoted member mounting a terminal section of said upper track, and a counterweight carried by said pivoted member to normally hold said terminal track portion in operative position, said carriage overbalancing said counterweight when the weight thereof is applied to said terminal section.

8. The construction defined in claim 1, wherein a member is pivoted to said guide on a horizontal transverse axis, said pivoted member mounting a terminal section of said upper track, a counterweight carried by said pivoted member to normally hold said terminal track portion in operative position, said carriage overbalancing said counterweight when the weight thereof is applied to said terminal section, and a stop on said guide limiting lowering movement of said member. I

9. The construction defined in claim 1, wherein a member is pivoted to said guide on a horizontal transverse axis, said pivoted member mounting a terminal section of said upper track, a counterweight carried by said pivoted member to normally hold said terminal track portion in operative position, said carriage overbalancing said counterweight when the weight thereof is applied to said terminal section, and a latch on said guide normally locking said member in operative position and releasable by engagement of said carriage therewith.

10. The construction defined in claim 1, wherein said driving means comprises a power driven actuator, a crank rotated by said actuator, and a link connecting said crank and said carriage.

11. The construction defined in claim 1, Wherein said driving means comprises an electrical motor, a crank driven by said motor and a link connecting said crank and carriage, an electrical switch having an actuator juxtaposed to said crank, and an abutment carried by said crank and engageable with said switch actuator.

12. A pallet feeding device comprising a support, a rack carried by said support and adapted to carry a stack of pallets, a guide carried by said support below said rack to project laterally therefrom, a carriage shiftable on said guide, upper and lower tracks carried by said guide, driving means for reciprocating said carriage longitudinally of said guide, a terminal portion of said upper track being bodil shiftable when engaged by said carriage during its feed stroke to tilt said carriage to pallet-releasing position and transfer a portion of said carriage to said lower track,

said lower track joining said upper track to return the carriage to said upper track in engagement with said stack at the end of its return stroke.

13. A pallet feeding device comprising a support, a rack carried by said support and adapted to carry a stack of pallets, a guide carried by said support below said rack to project laterally therefrom, a carriage shiftable on said guide, upper and lower tracks carried by said guides, driving means for reciprocating said carriage longitudinally of said guide, a terminal portion of said upper track being bodily shiftable when engaged by said carriage during its feed stroke to tilt said carriage to pallet-releasing position and transfer a portion of said carriage to said lower track, said lower track joining said upper track to return the carriage to said upper track in engagement with said stack at the end of its return stroke, and a latch normally locking the terminal track portion in operative relation to said upper track, said carriage releasing said latch at the end of its feed stroke.

14. A pallet feeding device comprising a support, a rack carried by said support and adapted to carry a stack of pallets, a guide carried by said support below said rack to project laterally therefrom, a carriage shiftable on said guide, said carriage including two pivotally connected sections, driving means connected with one carriage section for reciprocating said carriage on said guide, the other carriage section being adapted to engage and propel therewith the lowermost pallet from said stack during the feed stroke of said carriage, means for tilting the pallet propelling section of said carriage to discharge position at the end of its feed stroke, said guide positioning said pallet engaging section of said carriage spaced below said stack during the major portion of the return stroke of said carriage.

PAUL E. BOHM, Sn.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,115,421 Fergusson Oct. 2'7, 1914 1,862,386 Neil June 7, 1932 1,929,340 Wagner Oct. 3, 1933 

